Read in
The US House of Representatives unanimously voted Sept. 9 to allow the families of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to sue Riyadh in US court, defying President Barack Obama and an army of Saudi lobbyists. The voice vote follows similar action by the Senate in May and sends the bill to Obama, who now has to decide whether vetoing the popular bill is worth the political cost.
The White House has objected to the legislation for years on the grounds that weakening sovereign immunity protections could hurt the United States' ability to conduct foreign policy. Current and former government officials have also warned that other countries may retaliate, putting US troops and diplomats in harm's way for their actions abroad.
